Alterant (Belador #2)(95)

Evalle waved Storm off to the left before he reached her. He could meld into the dark pocket of thick bushes surrounding the corner of the building.

When he hesitated, she mouthed the words, You promised.

Storm conceded and backed into the dark, watching.

She called out to Tristan when he got within twenty feet of her. “Don’t be a fool thinking VIPER will not get you.”

His head jerked up, green eyes shining in the night. He shoved his sister behind him. “Get out of my way, Evalle.”

“I can’t go back empty-handed, and you have nowhere to run. Stand and fight with me, just like I did with you today.”

He handed the umbrella around to his sister. “You’re wrong. I can take us far away from here to live safe.”

“The only way you could do that is by flying, and I heard people in the subway station talking about Harts-field being covered with the fog.” Big lie, but he wouldn’t know that.

Tristan’s sister stepped up beside him with a hand on her hip. “That’s just bullshit.”

He scowled at her.

Evalle looked his sister over. An attractive young woman, if someone liked petite and mouthy. “I guess you’re Petrina.”

The young woman gave her a duh look. “I guess you’re the ass-wipe that wants to use us to buy your freedom.”

Snotty little twit. Evalle ignored her. Tristan drove the decisions for his group. “The Tribunal will give Sen freedom to hunt you himself. His philosophy is the only good Alterant is one that is never seen again. And that doesn’t even take into account the Nyght Raiders.”

“Who?” Tristan asked.

“A black-ops group run by a man who lost his best friend to an Alterant. They’ve had a kill-on-sight policy for much longer than VIPER. You’re putting your sister and the other two at more risk than you realize.” She looked around. “Where are those two?”

Petrina started to mouth off again, but Tristan squeezed her. He said, “They’re busy.”

Evalle changed her tactic. “You can risk your life and your sister’s, but it’s unfair to jeopardize Webster’s and Aaron’s without giving them a chance to have their say.”

Tristan snapped at Evalle, “You’re holding me up. Move aside. We’re leaving.”

“When we were in the maze, you said you’d share information and help me once your sister was safe.”

“She’s not safe yet.”

“Neither of you will ever be if you don’t work with me.”

Indecision finally entered Tristan’s face.

Evalle jumped on her opening. “Let me at least take Webster and Aaron with me if they agree. Give me enough information to plead for the three of us. I won’t go anywhere without them, and they’ll be safe from the fog if they’re at VIPER headquarters.”

Maybe Brina could argue that Evalle had brought in two of the three escaped Alterants that were still alive. How could the Tribunal expect Evalle to deliver a dead Alterant?

Petrina said, “She’s lying.”

Evalle shook her head. “You know I’m not, Tristan. I won’t accept freedom unless the Tribunal gives it to all three of us.”

Rain streamed down his face while he debated. He wiped water from his eyes and finally said, “If Webster and Aaron agree to go—”

Petrina grabbed his arm. “No!”

He gave her a hard look that silenced her, then finished saying, “You’re right. I can’t make that choice for them. If they agree to go with you, then I’ll tell you enough to support your case, but if I find out you’ve lied to me at any time, I’ll make you regret using them for as long as you live.”

The weight she’d been toting on her back for days lost a few pounds.

Petrina’s gaze shifted to her right, where Webster and Aaron came walking up from across the street.

“Hi, Evalle,” Webster called, grinning.

“Hi, Webster.” She started to speak to Aaron, but she smelled sulfur. Then saw the leading edge of the fog creeping up behind Tristan and his sister. Webster and Aaron would be in the line of fog in another few steps when they joined Tristan.

Webster called over to Tristan, “Thought we were meeting at the subway station.”

Before Tristan could answer, Evalle said, “The fog is coming. We have to get out of here.”

Tristan spun to look behind him, and just that quickly the fog began to circle them.

A growl rattled from the bushes.

Storm. Evalle looked at him and shook her head, pleading with him not to attack.

Tristan said to Webster and Aaron, “Stay close to me and hold your breath if the fog catches us.” When the other two Alterants joined Tristan, he turned to Evalle. “The only way out is behind you. You can talk to Webster and Aaron on the way if—”

A man’s voice boomed through a loudspeaker from behind her, “Evalle, back away from the Alterants! We’ve got them in our sights.”

She turned and saw nothing, which meant Isak’s black-ops team was invisible in the night. When she looked back at Tristan, his face had twisted with rage.

He shouted at her, “It’s a trap. You lied to me!”

“No, I didn’t. I tried to tell you about the Nyght Raiders.”

“Bullshit. You were just buying time until you had us all in one spot. You knew I wouldn’t agree to go with you and leave my sister. I can’t believe I listened to you.”